Ron Shultz, PhD
Associate Professor of Education
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Across the country, bilingual teachers are in short supply. This has direct implications for Dual Language programs. Professional literature also suggests that equally problematic to the recruitment of DL teachers is their retention. Multiple factors can influence a teacher’s choice to leave the DL classroom, or perhaps even the teaching profession. However, if we are to reverse this trend, greater understanding of these dynamics and an intentional effort to address the related challenges and concerns must be considered. This presentation focuses on efforts to better understand the needs and experiences of teachers in a particular DL program, while also creating opportunities for increased support, with the ultimate goal of increasing teachers’ sense of competence and longevity in their role.

Dr. Ron Shultz is an Associate Professor of Teacher Education and the Coordinator for the PK-6 Elementary Education Program at EMU. He also serves as the Field Placement Coordinator for the department. He earned a B.S. degree in Liberal Arts studies from ��ݮ���� with a PK-8 teaching certification, an M.A. in Education from Millersville University, and a Ph.D. George Mason University with a focus on teacher education and multicultural/multilingual education. Ron has been teaching in the Education Department at EMU since the fall of 2011. In addition to preparing future elementary teachers, Ron’s research interests include bilingual education and culturally responsive teaching.

Theology and Ethics After Nature

Peter Dula
Professor of Religion and Culture
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Can nature tell us anything about morality? Can humans draw conclusions about how to live with each other and the land from observations about ecology? In recent years, scholars across disciplines have argued not just that we can but that we must in order to adequately reckon with the climate crisis. Jedediah Purdy, a prominent theorist of democracy and environmental law, argues that this is a mistake. Moreover, he thinks it is a mistake that can be blamed on religion. In this colloquium I will try to say why I think he is right about the former but wrong about the latter.

Peter Dula is Professor of Religion and Culture at ��ݮ����. He received a Ph.D from Duke University in theology and ethics in 2004. He is the author of Cavell, Companionship, and Christian Theology (Oxford, 2011) and co-editor (with David Evans) of Between the World of Ta-Nehisi Coates and Christianity (Cascade, 2018). Before coming to EMU, he worked with the Mennonite Central Committee in Iraq and Burundi and taught at the Meserete Kristos College Ethiopia where he was a Fulbright scholar. His most recent work is in the areas of eco-theology and philosophy.

Ruralism and Resistance: Environmental Concern Among Mennonites in the U.S.

Jennifer Holsinger, Associate Professor of Sociology at ��ݮ����

The case of Mennonites offers an opportunity to examine the intersection between rurality, religion and environmental perspectives. Drawing from her sabbatical project, Jenni will apply a framework of religious environmental movements to data from a national survey of Mennonites. She will explore the roles of individual and place characteristics on the predominant environmental discourses of a religious group that is often overlooked in the sociological literature.  

Jenni Holsinger is Associate Professor of Sociology at ��ݮ����. She completed her graduate studies at the University of Washington and her undergraduate degree at Seattle Pacific University. Her research interests include the ways that the intersection between race and place is informed by dynamics of environmental injustice and experienced differently by groups according to ethnic heritage and migrant status. Jenni enjoys travelling and playing disc golf with her husband and two teenage sons.

Andrea Saner
Associate Professor of Bible, Religion, and Theology
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Theological interpretation of scripture began in the 1990s as a Christian movement within English-language theology and biblical studies, as scholars rallied around a shared critique of historical criticism. Recently, the battle lines have eased, and more theological interpreters include historical-critical approaches as preliminary aims toward the goals of theological interpretation. Drawing on her work in writing a commentary on Exodus, Andrea will introduce the lively scholarly debates surrounding the history of development of the Sinai traditions in Exodus and engage an ecumenical and interfaith conversation about the nature of divine revelation in light of these texts and their transmission histories.

Andrea D. Saner is associate professor of Old Testament and Hebrew Language. Author of “Too Much to Grasp”: Exodus 3:13-15 and the Reality of God (Eisenbrauns, 2015), Andrea is currently writing the Exodus volume for the T&T Clark International Theological Commentary. Originally from Pennsylvania, Andrea came to EMU from northeast England, where she received a PhD in Old Testament from Durham University; she also holds a Master of Arts in Theological Studies from Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Elkhart, Indiana. Andrea enjoys gardening, cycling, baking, and living in Harrisonburg with her husband and two young children.

In the 1940s, six in ten Americans hadn’t gone past the eighth grade. Today a majority have attended college.  But surveys show that Americans today are no better educated about politics.  A majority don’t even know that we have three branches of government.  What’s gone wrong? The answer to the question would seem to be that we have a voter problem.  But Shenkman argues what we actually have is a human being problem.  In his talk he draws on research in history and science to explain why modern humans fail so often at tasks they should be good at (like deciding which politicians we can trust with power). He also asks why, despite obvious improvements in our democracy — such as the extension of voting rights to African Americans in 1965 — the system seems to be so frustratingly unequal to the challenges we face.  He ends his talk on an optimistic note.  Science shows that for all their faults human beings share one gift that saves them time and again:  our adaptability to change and our willingness in the end to face reality.  

Rick Shenkman is the founder of George Washington University’s , a website that features leading historians’ perspectives on current events. He can regularly be seen on Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC. He is a New York Times best-selling author of seven history books; his latest book is Political Animals: How Our Stone-Age Brain Gets in the Way of Smart Politics (Basic Books). Educated at Vassar and Harvard, Mr. Shenkman is an Emmy award-winning investigative reporter and the former managing editor of KIRO-TV, the CBS affiliate in Seattle. In 1997 he was the host, writer and producer of a prime time series for The Learning Channel inspired by his books on myths. In 2008 he was elected a Fellow of the Society of American Historians. He gives lectures at colleges around the country on several topics, including American myths and presidential politics.

Reading can save your life: living our lives in conversation with received narratives

In the Shelter can be understood, in a way, as an homage to reading: reading poetry, reading religious texts, reading the story of your own life. This colloquium will explore the practice of reading, and the question about normative narratives in personal and group belonging.

An ecotone is a landscape ecology term for the zone where two neighboring habitats interact. In his presentation, Kevin will explore how ecotones might help us think about the interactions between our readings of scripture and of literature. He will draw on his recent sabbatical-year experience teaching at the Oregon Extension, share a little about his forthcoming book with Cambridge University Press titled Rethinking the Secular Origins of the Novel: The Bible in English Fiction, 1678–1767, and look ahead to his next writing project on ecology, scripture, and science fiction by discussing Octavia Butler’s Parable of the Sower.��

Dr. Kevin Seidel is an Associate Professor of English at ��ݮ����. He teaches first-year college writing, a number of general education and humanities classes, and a wide range of literature, from ancient epics to contemporary poetry and science fiction. Originally from California, Kevin came to EMU from the University of Virginia, where he received his Ph.D. in English Literature and was a postdoctoral fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture. Before that he earned a master’s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia. He teaches and writes about the changing relationship between religion, secularism, and literature. He is a long-time practitioner of Scriptural Reasoning, where Jews, Christians, and Muslims gather to read each other’s scripture. And his book tentatively titled Rethinking the Secular Origins of the Novel: The Bible in English Fiction, 1678–1767 will be published by Cambridge University later this year.

Restorative Justice in Educational Settings: Beyond Circles and Conferences

Dr. Kathy Evans is an Associate Professor of Education at ��ݮ����, teaching courses in educational psychology, special education, and restorative justice in education. She is the co-author of The Little Book of Restorative Justice in Education and has published articles and book chapters related to restorative justice and school discipline practices, focusing on the ways in which restorative justice is applied to educational contexts. With a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology and Research from The University of Tennessee in Knoxville, her teaching and scholarship focus on ways in which educators participate in creating more just and equitable educational opportunities for all students, including those with disability labels, those who exhibit challenging behavior, and those who are marginalized for a variety of reasons, including race, ethnicity, language, sexual orientation, and gender identity.��

Restorative Justice: Signs and Symbols of Movement-Making

Carl Stauffer, PhD
Associate Professor, Center for Justice and Peacebuilding
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Carl Stauffer, PhD, is Associate Professor of Justice at the Center for Justice & Peacebuilding at ��ݮ����. He also serves as Co-Director of the Zehr Institute for RJ, and Academic Director of the Caux Scholars Program in Switzerland. Carl earned his PhD from the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal in South Africa. He has conducted RJ training and consultation in 37 countries on six continents. Carl’s research focuses on RJ as a social movement, and the use of indigenous and community justice practices as alternatives to mainstream transitional justice.

Muslims and the Making of America
Amir Hussian, PhD
Professor of Theological Studies
Loyola Marymount University
“There has never been an America without Muslims.” Amir Hussain, an American Muslim, contends that Muslims played an essential role in the creation and cultivation of the United States. 
Dr. Hussain is Professor of Theological Studies at Loyola Marymount University, the Jesuit university in Los Angeles. He teaches courses on Islam and comparative religion. From 2011 to 2015, Amir was the editor of the Journal of the American Academy of Religion, and he is currently on the board of directors of the American Academy of Religion. He is an advisor for the television series The Story of God with Morgan Freeman. His most recent books are the two volume textbooks for Oxford University Press published last year, World Religions: Western Traditions and World Religions: Eastern Traditions.  The author or editor of 6 other books, he has also published over 60 book chapters and scholarly articles about religion.

Sexual Harm: Templates for Resistance and Resilience

Carolyn Stauffer, PhD
Associate Professor, Applied Social Sciences
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Dr. Carolyn Stauffer is a consultant and educator in the fields of sexual trauma and domestic violence and is Associate Professor of Applied Social Sciences at EMU. Stauffer has trained sexual assault response teams, DOJ officers, civil society groups and gender-based violence organizations across four continents. She has lived and worked in the Middle East (15 years), Africa (16 years) and has been the primary investigator on two competitive grants. Stauffer has 20 years of practice experience, with a focus on enhancing survivor resilience through strength-based approaches.

Holly Scott brings the final University Colloquium address of the academic year.

Jim Leaman, University Colloquium address:

“Sustainable Housing: new analysis turns the tables”

Powerpoint

Does the arc of history really bend towards justice as King and Obama liked to say? Think theologically about hope and history with Professor Peter Dula as part of the Common Read Chapel Series on Between the World and Me.

 is Associate Professor of Religion and Culture. He received a Ph.D from Duke University in theology and ethics in 2004. He is the author of Cavell, Companionship, and Christian Theology (Oxford, 2011). Before coming to EMU in 2006 he was the Mennonite Central Committee Iraq Program Coordinator. He has taught at Lancaster Mennonite High School and at the Meserete Kristos College in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia where he was a Fulbright scholar in 2001-2002. He has received several grants and fellowships including, most recently, the Louisville Institute Sabbatical Grant for Researchers.

University Colloquium with

Nabila Hijazi is a Graduate Writing Fellow at the University of Maryland and a Ph.D. candidate with a focus in English and a Concentration in Composition & Rhetoric. She is an ESL expert and has published in this field. In this colloquium address, Nabila speaks to us about strategies for promoting multicultural voices on our campus.

James Krabill presents the monthly colloquium address titled, “Music is NOT a universal language! Re-tuning our ears to new ‘Mennonite’ sounds”

Promoting New Solutions to Water Crises in a Changing Kenya

Doug Graber Neufeld, PhD

Kenya faces a range of growing water-related challenges that typify those in many countries around the world. Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) works with local and international partners in Kenya to encourage the adoption of sustainable solutions to these challenges. This seminar will describe three such MCC projects: 1) sand dams for community water harvesting in semi-arid regions, 2) conservation agriculture for increased crop production in rainfed agriculture, and 3) solar disinfection for clean water supply in urban slums of Nairobi. Rigorous monitoring and experimentation is playing a key role in successes of these projects that promote changes in behavior and technology. Lessons coming out of this emphasis center on the importance of participatory approaches, coupled with advances in understanding how social change happens and how individuals make decisions.

Doug Graber Neufeld, Professor of Biology at ��ݮ����, received his B.A. from Tabor College, and his Ph.D. from the University of Texas, Austin. He held post-doctoral research positions at medical schools at the University of Arizona, and the University of Otago (New Zealand) before coming to EMU in 1998, where he teaches courses related to environmental sustainability and health. As of this August, he is director of the Center for Sustainable Climate Solutions, a collaborative effort of EMU, Goshen College and Mennonite Central Committee (MCC). Doug has worked for MCC on water-related projects twice, first for two years in Cambodia, and more recently for two years in Kenya. In addition, he works with water projects locally, with a focus on water quality impacts in local streams.